The National Police of Ponferrada arrested two men, aged 41 and 29, suspected of six robberies with violence and intimidation and two robberies with force.
Since mid-August and after receiving the first complaint, they have started an investigation to which have been added the data provided by more citizens who reported having been victims of robberies and violent attacks. Some events occurred between August 16 and September 2.
These were carried out in the central area of Ponferrada and all had the same characteristics. The “modus operandi” used was the immobilization and strangulation technique known as “mataleón”.
This involves abruptly approaching the victim from behind, grabbing him firmly by the neck and strangling him with the forearm. As a result, the victim fell to the ground and even lost consciousness. At that moment, they took advantage of the situation to take away all the valuables without being able to see them clearly.
Similarly, they also threatened to put a knife to their necks to intimidate them further. The two people investigated acted together on three occasions and one of them acted individually on three other occasions.
For this reason, they launched an operation to clarify what had happened. They proceeded to view images and security cameras located in the areas of action of the first complaints and in the rest of the surrounding streets that could be used.
The investigation focused on the credit card stolen from the first victim, which she used in a 24-hour store. They then analyzed the stolen phones and identified them on the street.
During the course of obtaining evidence, one of the criminals quickly began acting alone again. He approached one of the victims, placed a knife under her neck while searching her pockets or demanding anything of value she was carrying. In fact, one of them was caught red-handed while trying to break into a vehicle.
The 41-year-old man is the author of six crimes of robbery with violence and intimidation. Both were placed at the disposal of the Ponferrada Police Court, which ordered their immediate incarceration without bail.
